More Helpers Than Sharers? Barriers to Involved Fathering in Hungary

Fathers face conflicting expectations as both involved caregivers and traditional breadwinners. This study examines the tensions of this dual role using data from the Cohort ‘18—Growing Up in Hungary birth cohort study, analyzing responses from over 1,700 fathers of 18‐month‐old children collected between October 2019 and December 2020, using linear regression models. We assess how fathers’ workloads, perceived work–family conflict, and fathering‐role attitudes—their own and their partners’—relate to the division of caregiving tasks on weekdays and weekends. Results show that caregiving remains largely the mother’s responsibility, with fathers reporting relatively low involvement. Moreover, longer working hours and higher work–family conflict are associated with reduced paternal involvement in childcare tasks. Egalitarian attitudes—particularly fathers’—are linked to greater paternal engagement, especially on weekdays, where a one‐unit increase in the fathering index is associated with a 10.6% increase in task‐sharing. This suggests that egalitarian attitudes may be most consequential during weekdays, when fathers face time constraints and competing priorities, compared to more flexible weekend periods.